Death & Dirt
by mysexeyedwardcullen
Summary: Continuation of One Snowy Afternoon. The team has been separated since the case at the train station, and now a new one has finally appeared. A high school in the country is experiencing strange phenomena. But the case itself will not be the only challenge the team faces. Naru and Mai have established a relationship, but could it be broken by someone from Mai's past?
1. Chapter 1

_Cough, cough, cough… 'I can't breathe…help…please don't leave…' Cough, cough, cough…. 'Noooooo! Stop! Please! Don't!' Then, all that could be heard was screams._

* * *

**March 3**

It has been a few months since our last case at the train station. We have had a few small cases, but nothing truly major. Lately, we have just been sitting around the office waiting and wondering what was going to come next. Monk has been traveling with his rock band more and more. Masako is coming over to the office each chance she gets. Ayako is doing what she normally does, whatever that is. And John, has been helping out in the fellow churches he has been associated with. Lin and Aya could not be better. Lin is his same composed self, but as soon as Aya walks in I feel like I am watching a transformation take place.

As Naru and myself, nothing has really changed. He is treating me the same has he always had. I don't understand it. But I guess that is just Naru for you. Don't get me wrong. I would love to be treated special by him, but what if he has already been doing that? I mean for Naru to act any differently would, I guess, make him not Naru. At least not the one I know. I wish he could just treat me like he does in my dreams. Even in private would be great. He doesn't have to treat me like that in front of the others, but I would like to at least have another moment with him. Like the one on that one snowy afternoon.

The office was quiet again today. Naru and Lin were both sitting in their offices, while I was preparing tea for the day. I was just about to bring them their tea, when there was a knock at the door. Curiosity got the better of me. So I set the tea down and went to open the door. There was an older gentleman on the other side. He looked to be tired, which I believe gave him the appearance of being older than he actually was. He was dressed in a suit and was holding a briefcase and had his coat draped over he his arm. He gave me a weak smile, but his eyes were not smiling. They appeared to be in pain. I greeted him and asked him to step in and take a seat. He thanked me in a hush tone and seated himself in the waiting area.

I picked up the team and made my way to Naru's office. He looked up from his book after he told me I could enter. I set the tea down on his desk and informed that a client was here. He simply nodded and requested me to go tell Lin. I made my way to Lin's office and gave him tea. Lin took the tea and made his way to the meeting area where Naru was waiting for the client.

It had been a couple hours now since Naru and Lin had started conversing with the gentlemen that came to the office. I had a feeling that we would be taking this case, especially since this meeting has yet to end. Right when I thought that the gentleman emerged from the meeting room with Naru and Lin on his tail. He bowed to them, and made his leave. I looked to Naru and Lin and they were already discussing quietly to themselves.

"So, do we have a new case?" I questioned.

"Mai, please contact the others. Tell them to meet us at Fukui High School. We have a new case," Naru stated flately.

"Yes, sir!" I exclaimed as I made my way to the phone. We were all finally about to be reunited once again.

* * *

**March 4_ Day 1**

The school had a old atmosphere to it. The students were everywhere. Naru, Lin, and I arrived first. We decided to make our way to the principal's office. We got there pretty easily. The lady at the front desk was expecting us, and let us right in. The principle was the older gentleman that came to the office the other day.

"Hello, thank you so much coming," he stated again in a hush tone.

"It's no problem," Naru stated as a matter of fact.

"Now, what will you be needing?"

"We will need a room where we can set up our base, and also we will need everyone's cooperation. That includes students and teachers. I will also need to interview anyone who has been involved in this phenomenon."

"Ah, yes straight away. I have already informed the teachers and the students to work with you all. But I must warn you that some of the teachers are not too excited about you being here."

"But, why? We have done nothing wrong," Mai stated.

"Let us just say that some of our, faithful, faculty do not accept these ideas," the principle said kindly.

"And by faithful, you mean the ones that have worked her the longest," Naru questioned.

"Yes," he said with a small smile. "Well anyway let me lead you to a room. I'm sure the others on your team will be arriving shortly. I will stop by later to thank them for their services."

A couple hours later we had the base all set up. We were finally ready to start all the interviews when the door swung open.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? Already starting without us huh Naru?" cam a masculine voice.

"Monk!" exclaimed Mai as she run to him to give him a hug. Monk was like an older brother to her and she a younger sister to him. Ever since the team found out that she was a orphan, during their bloodstained labyrinth case, they have united more in a family sense.

"Hey Mai. How is it goin'?" Monk exclaimed as he returned her hug.

"Great. I have missed you. How have you been?"

"Amazing! The band is really starting to take off. We are having more fans come by the performance."

"That's awesome!"

Monk laughed, "Yeah, but I guessed that would happened. I mean look at who is the band."

"Oh Monk, sometimes you are so full of it," Mai commented laughing.

"Are the other with you Mr. Takigawa?" Naru question sounding a little annoyed.

'Geez, once again he proves to be all work,' Mai thought to herself.

Monk laughed again replying, "Yeah they are on their way up."

Jus as he said that the rest of the team appeared at the door. Mai ran to each of them and gave them a huge hug.

"Wait, where is Yasuhara?" Mai questioned looking into the hallway.

"He is not coming. He sends his best, but someone in his family has been admitted into the hospital. He decided to travel up there to see if there was anything he could do," John said with an sadness in his voice.

"Aw! Well we will just have to keep him in our prays," Mai commented.

"That's right," Ayako agreed.

"Where is Miss Aya?" Masako questioned. "We assumed she would be coming up with you all."

"Oh, she will be coming up later," Mai answered. "She has another job, and they needed her help for the rest of today and tomorrow."

Everyone began talking to catch up with one another. Everyone was having a good time, including Lin and Naru. Not a long time had passed and it was time to get to work. Naru got everyone back on track. The team went back to work. They were all about to head out when there was a knock at the door. The door opened to reveal the principle standing there.

"Ah, I see that the rest of your team as arrived. Hello everyone, I am principle Keysho," he introduced himself. "I would just like to thank you all for being willing to work with us."

"Oh please, it is our jobs. There is no real need to thank us," Monk said with a smile.

The principle smiled back and replied, "I have asked a student to help you in any way possible. He can be an assistant, or just round up the student and faculty you will need to proceed with your investigation."

"Oh, thank you," Mai answered. "That will be most helpful."

"Yes, we will at least be able to find our way around the school much easier," Masako commented.

"Yes, but I do hope the student knows what they are getting themselves into," John said with a concerned tone.

"Oh, the student will be fine. We will be able to protect them," Ayako included.

"You mean everyone excluding you, right?" Monk asked with a laugh.

"Why, you!" Ayako exclaimed directing her anger at Monk. "Have you forgotten about the case where I saved you all!"

"One save does not make up for all the other," Monk replied with a smirk.

Ayako stood there fuming as the other just watched. Naru sighed and made his way to the principle. They exchanged a few words and then the principle left. Naru turned back to the team to see Mai holding Ayako back and John doing the same to Monk. He felt a headache coming on and decided it was time to split everyone up, quickly. He was about to give directions, when another knock was heard. The team froze and turned toward the door. When it opened there was a handsome young man at the door dressed in the schools uniform. He had black hair and gray looking eyes.

"Hello, my name is Kai Yamato," he stated whiling bowing.

"Kai…," Mai questioned as she released Ayako from her grip.

The boy picked his head and looked toward the voice that said his name. He stiffened at seeing Mai. Mai froze in her place and just stared at him.

"Kai…is it really you," she questioned.

"Mai…Mai Taniyama…" he answered back. Mai nodded her head. He let a smile cross his face. "It is good to see you Mai."

"Mai, who is this?" Monk questioned concerned. "How do you know him?"

"He…he was a very close friend of the family…and he is my ex-boyfriend…"


	2. Chapter 2

Day_1

Everyone remained silent as those words left Mai's mouth. They were not sure how to react. Mai had never mentioned this guy before, which means that it could only have ended badly. The room became stiffer as the silence took over.

"Kai!" Mai exclaimed as she got her composer back. She walked up to him and gave him a friendly hug, which he returned. "How have you been?! I haven't seen you in ages! How is Mama?" Mai questioned as she released her hug.

Kai gave a little laugh and replied, "She is doing great Mai. She misses you though, and I have been doing great as well."

"That's awesome!" Mai exclaimed smiling. She then noticed how Kai had left his hands on her hips. She thought nothing of it until a flash of Naru came into her mind. She immediately felt awkward and slipped back into the middle of the room quicker than someone could blink. She then started laughing nervously, while rubbing the back of her neck. Kai on the other hand got a troubled look on his face when Mai reacted that way. He took a deep breath and returned his focus to everyone in the room.

"My principle has sent me to be your guide around the school, and whatever else you need," Kai stated in a firm voice.

"Oh, really?" Mai stated with a hint of nervousness in her voice that only a few people caught. "That's great. We will really appreciate your help," she replied with a bow.

Kai gave her a smile back. "So, what is the first thing you all would like to do?" he questioned.

"Yes Naru, what is it you would like us all to do first?" Monk chimed in.

With a sigh he replied, "First I would like to gather all the students who have experienced any phenomena in the school. Mrs. Matsuzaki I would like you and Miss Hara to go around the school to see if you sense anything. Mr. Brown and Mr. Takigawa I would like you to do the same to the half the ladies are not doing. Lin, Mai, and myself will stay at base and collect information from the students."

Everyone nodded their heads signaling to Naru that they understood. Kai set out first to collect the students, and then Ayako, Masako, John, and Monk followed. Lin was gathering his computer and setting it down on the table for the interviews. Naru took his seat and Mai stood at his right side. She wondered what Naru was thinking when her relationship to Kai came out. His face was so expressionless when they were around the group. She had gotten to the point where she could read him a little, but right now he was another mystery to solve.

After a few moments there was a knock at the door. Kai had returned with a handful of students. Naru instructed them to take a seat and one by one tell their story.

"It was so weird…I was in the bathroom when all of the sudden the lights went out," one of the girls began. "Of course I had to be in the bathroom right in the middle of the school. So there were no windows. At first I did not think anything of it. The school often has power outs. But when I made my way to the door…it wouldn't open…"

"And then what happened?" Naru questioned.

"Well at that point I started to panic. Right when I was coming to a rational conclusion I heard a voice…

_'You can't leave. You are not allowed.'_ That's what it said. I started looking around and telling whoever was pulling this joke should just come out now. Then all I heard was laughing. Next thing I knew I was being thrown up against the wall. It felt like hands were around my neck…chocking me," the girl paused and began to undo the thick necklace around her neck. Once it was off we could clearly see hand marks on her throat. "I tried to scream, but nothing could come out. I was so scared," she began crying.

"That's when I walked into the bathroom," a girl chimed in. "I found her on the floor coughing and brought her to the nurse's office. She didn't believe her when she told her what happened. She was convinced that she was covering for someone who was bullying her."

"And yet, you believed her?" Naru questioned with a raised brow.

"Well, yes. There was no one else in the bathroom and in the hallways. There is only one entrance and exit to that bathroom. I would have seen someone. But not only that we have all experienced something at one point or another."

"So, tell me your story," he stated flatly.

"I have an off hour during the day. So I convinced my teachers that I should use that hour towards something productive. I want to become a nurse so I was allowed to assist the nurse during my off hour. One day the nurse had to make an errand. So I was left in the nurse's station by myself. It wasn't weird or anything until I heard some sobbing. At first I brushed it off. The bell had just rung so I figured someone was late or just received bad news on their way to class. But the sobbing didn't stop. Then along with the sobbing I heard a woman's voice start whispering to stop. She even started begging. So I went into the hallway to see if anyone was out there. It was empty. So I stepped out just to make sure. Once I did that I couldn't hear it anymore. Then I heard a scream come from the nurse's station. I ran back in there and looked around. Nothing had been moved, but a window had been opened. One of the curtains that were secluding a bed had begun to move because of the wind. I thought I saw something so I went over. I pulled back the curtain and the bed…was covered in blood."

"Hmmm, interesting," Naru thought out loud. "Anything else going on?"

It was then all the students in the room began to report what had happened to them. Some were not has big of situations as others. But others seemed to give a person a chill all the way to their core. The team had piles of reports by the time the students were done coming in. Next were the teachers.

"Well this should be fun, huh Naru?" Mai questioned. Naru gave her no response and not even a glance. Mai felt the dread beginning come over her. 'Why was he not talking to her? She had not done anything wrong. Surely Naru would not be jealous of Kai? Would he?' she thought.

There was a knock on the door and then Kai entered. 'Well speak of the devil,' Mai thought.

"Hi, Mr. Shibuya," Kai stated getting Naru's attention. "I'm sorry, but the teacher refuse to come."

"What do you mean they refuse to come?" Naru questioned.

"Just as I have said, they refuse to come and help out in the investigation."

"But that is crazy!" Mai exclaimed. "The Principle said that they would cooperate with us!"

"Did you inform them that the principle did indeed say this?" Lin questioned in.

Kai nodded in response, "But they still refuse."

"Naru, go make them come in here!" Mai directed at him. Naru again did not reply to her and only stared in Kai's direction. "Naru!"

"Mai, calm down," Lin chimed in. "We have enough information right now."

"But what if the teachers are holding something back?! That could hinder the whole case! Right Naru?!"

"Mai there is nothing I can do right now. So please be quiet," Naru stated in a harsh tone.

Mai took a startled step back and just looked at Naru.

"Naru!" Lin said in a warning tone.

Naru then stood up and made his way out the room with Lin following. Mai stood absolutely still with her hands in fists and her head bowed. Kai gave her a concerned look. "Mai?" he questioned. She gave no response. "Mai are you alright?" he asked making his way towards her.

Mai then straightened up and put a huge smile on her face. Kai froze stunned at the drastic change. "Yeah, I am fine," she stated in a happy tone. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Mai, you don't have to lie. I know you better than you think."

"Nothing is wrong Kai, really."

"Mai…"

"Look, I have changed some since the last time we saw each other. So you don't know as well as you think. I am fine."

"Mai, our relationship was…"

"Let's not talk about that ok," she said with a smile. "What is in the past is in the past."

"Ok."

"Great, now let's wait here until everyone returns. I have a feeling that things are about to get busy.

Naru and Lin were making their way down the hall. Lin could tell that something was bothering Naru. He was secluding himself more than usual, and he was ignoring Mai. Lin had his suspensions as to why Naru was acting like he was.

"Naru, just talk to her," Lin commented.

Naru remained silent and kept on walking.

"Naru I'm serious. Just talk to Mai and work things out."

"Why should I need to talk to Mai. Who she has dated is of no concern to me," Naru stated in a harsh tone.

"Naru, you both may be able to fool everyone else. But you can not fool me. I know you two are in a relationship. Just talk to her and tell her how you are feeling, before you make a stupid decision."

Again Naru did not reply.

Lin sighed, "Ok, well now that you have walked off some steam let's return to base. Everyone should be showing up soon."

Naru and Lin returned back to base. They entered to find Kai sitting at one end of the table and Mai organizing the notes and information they had gathered. Naru and Lin took a seat waiting for everyone to return. Mai put on some tea and began serving it when everyone came back to base.

"Ok, what did you all find?" Naru questioned.

"Well…," Monk began to say and then all they heard was a deadly scream.

* * *

Hey everyone! I hope you are liking the story. Sorry for the huge delay in updating it. This month has been pretty crazy. I will try to have Chapter 3 posted by the end of this week though. But in the mean time. Please review and let me know what you think :) Reviews are very encouraging.

Bye for now!


	3. Chapter 3

The team rushed out of the base and made their way towards the scream. They came to a class room and Monk swung open the door. There standing in the middle of the room was a tall figure. Consuming the figure was a black cloud. Its appearance was distorted and gave off a vibe of power. The figure turned slightly to see who had just interrupted its mission. Monk froze where he stood and just looked at the figure. He looked to the floor and found a girl curled up at the base of the figure. She had tears streaming down her face. Her body shook with fear at such a force Monk knew he had to do something quickly.

The rest of the team showed up behind Monk. They all looked at the figure wondering what it was going to do next. Mai stepped to the front of the group to see what was happening. She saw the girl on the ground. Her instincts made her lurch forward to go help the girl, but she found herself stopped by Ayako. John maneuvered his way beside Monk and was ready for anything. When the figure saw Mai make a move it turned fully towards them. If it had eyes it seemed it would have locked on directly to Mai's. Mai shivered at the thought.

"What are you doing here?" Monk's voice rang out.

The figure simply stayed where it was, never looking away from Mai.

"Who are you?" Monk questioned.

Still no response was given.

"Let the girl go," John chimed in.

At that moment the figure turned its focus to John. The black air around it became thicker and more powerful.

"You have made it angry John," Monk whispered.

"I can see that," John replied with his thick Australian accent covered in concern.

'I will not let her go…"

the figure rang out.

"What?" Monk replied startled.

"I will not let her go..."

"Takigawa we need to get this situation handled now!" Naru's voice ordered.

"Right!" Monk shouted back

Monk began to recite his chant. His hands folded, and eyes closed. His chant started to ring out louder and louder.

"I will not let her go…I will not let her go…"

Before anymore could blink Monk was thrown into the nearest wall.

"John!" Monk shouted.

"In the name of the Father…" John began to recite as his holy water splashing on the figure. Each time the water made contact with the figure an unmistakable burning noise came from it. The figure screamed out in pain. It hunched over and, if it could have, glared at John. It took a step forward and stopped. John finished the verse and threw one last bit of water on the figure. It roared in pain, and looked at Mai.

" I will not let her go!"

The figure exclaimed, and then it vanished.

The room cleared from the black atmosphere that the figure was consumed in and the sunlight once again shined brightly. The team relaxed. Mai ran to the girl on the floor with Kai hot on her trail. Ayako and Masako ran to the other children in the room. Monk and John did the same. Lin and Naru casually stood in the door way surveying the room.

Everyone in the room had minor cuts and bruises except for the girl that was curled up at the base of the figure. Kai got her to relax some and put her on his back. Mai and Kai had decided to bring her to the nurse's office for treatment. It would be there they would decide if she needed to be brought to the hospital for treatment.

"Just get out of my classroom!" a voice screamed.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned towards the voice. There stood a middle aged man yelling at Naru.

"You can not ignore what has just happened in your classroom sir," Naru replied calmly.

"You have not right to be here!"

"Actually he has just as much as you do, sir," Monk spoke up as he walked towards the two.

"That's right!" Mai commented. "We were hired by the Principle just as you were."

"I do not care get out of my classroom! I will not stand for people like you to be in my classroom!"

"Sir please calm down. You are in front of your students," Naru casually mentioned. "A teacher is suppose to be the example, and right now that is what your students need most."

"Just leave, please. We have been able to handle things on our own for a long time now. There is no reason for you to interfere."

"Long time?" Monk repeated.

"What do you mean a long time?" Naru questioned with authority in his voice.

"I...um...just leave please. Before you cause anymore trouble. I would like to continue my lesson," the teacher replied quickly.

"You can't just expect us to let a comment like that slide," Ayako's voice rang in. "Look at how many students here were just injured."

"She is right sir," Masako commented. "If that spirit does come back there is no telling what he damage will belike the next time."

"That's right, the next time it could be you that is injured," said John.

"Or worse, killed," Monk said ending the conversation.

The teacher let out a sigh and nodded towards Naru. The teacher told the students to clean up the room while he was gone, and to not worry about the lesson today because of the incident. Before long everyone was back at the base including the teacher. He seated himself in the chair across from Naru, and everyone waited patiently to hear what he had to say.

"Now, please tell me your name," Naru commanded politely.

"Mr. Flaga," he informed with his head down.

"Mr. Flaga regarding your comment earlier in your classroom, will you please care to explain," Naru stated.

"I do not know of which comment you are referring to," he replied in a hushed tone.

"Don't play dumb with us man," Monk said with irritation.

"Your comment about you being able to handle it thus far."

A sigh escaped the teachers lips, and then he looked up to make eye contact with Naru.

"It happen about fifteen years ago. I had just started working at the school. As you know, this is a great school in more areas than one. We always have the finest students applying. Not only do students apply, but teachers as well. That is why I was curious about why I was hired. You see I had just come out of college. To get a job at this school was more than a miracle to say the least. It was down right impossible. In the beginning I put my questions aside, and just assumed the gods were on my side. But then I found out about the teacher who I was replacing."

The team was listening quietly. Waiting to find out more about this man's story.

"He was an elder gentleman. He had been teaching all of his life. This only added to my curiosity because I could not understand why they would replace someone with a vas amount of experience with someone who has none at all. I began to ask around, only to find very few who were willing to share what had happened. I ended up asking some of the students. They were all terrified to say the least, but they shared what they could. Apparently the school was keeping it under wraps. All the knew was that it involved a young student and the teacher himself. You can imagine where my mind went at first, but that just did not seem to fit the picture. There was no reason for people to fear that story, and not utter a word about it. When I asked people they would break out into a sweat and become extremely nervous. A story like that would not cause such a reaction. So I dug a little deeper. I found the janitor that had been at the school longer than the teacher himself. I had heard that he was the one that uncovered the 'situation' if you will. I went and spoke to him. He told me everything. One day after school a young student had requested for tutoring. The teacher being the kind man he was decided he would help her..."

"Her? So this student was a young woman?" Naru questioned.

"Yes."

"About how old?" Lin inquired.

"A senior."

"Continue Mr. Flaga," Naru urged.

"After school she met him in his class room. Everything was fine apparently. But then when it was time to leave, he snapped... He started accusing her of having certain relations with his son and how she thought she was so clever. The student obviously became scared to say the least. She made a run for the door, but he caught her. He grabbed by the throat and started choking her. He began to call her names and continued to accuse of things that just did not make any sense, but the one he focused on the most was her relationship with his son. The janitor heard the commotion and hurried to the room. He found the teacher choking the student. The janitor acted quickly and got the teacher off the student... It was so strange..."

"But this explains nothing regarding your comment earlier," Monk concluded.

"Yes, wasn't it possible that the senior was having a relationship with the teacher's son?" said Ayako.

"It would. Except that the teacher had no son. More over he had no children. He was not even married."

A silence came over the room at that bit of information.

"I presume there is more?" said Naru.

Mr. Flaga gave a nod and continued, "Once the teacher was off the student he tried everything he could to get back at her, but the janitor had a good hold on him. Once the teacher saw that it was useless he fainted. The girl was curled up on the floor coughing and the janitor laid the teacher down. He made his way over to check on the student, and that is when they saw it. A black figure much like the one today rose out of the teacher's body. They froze where they were and the figure pointed to the girl and then vanished. Once the teacher regained consciousness he apologized to the student who understood everything. Not even a week later the teacher was gone. He resigned and left without telling anyone."

"But still what does that have to do with your comment today?" Monk questioned.

"The figure always shows up, and always singles out one girl from the classroom. We have been able to keep the situation under control, but since a few weeks ago the strange situations have increased. And I believe it is because of you that he has shown up again. His next arrival was not suppose to happen for another three weeks as usual."

"Interesting," Naru stated at the end.

"Why did the principle not inform us of this?" Ayako asked hotly.

"We just got this principle a couple of months ago. He was unaware of that particular incident. The previous principle was afraid of ruining the reputation of the school."

"So in conclusion he never sought out help," Naru said thinking out loud. "I would very much like to meet this teacher."

"I'm sorry. I'm afraid he passed away a couple of weeks ago. His family had been known to have heart trouble, and it finally got him I guess."

"So what do we do now Naru?" Monk asked.

"What about the previous principle?" Naru asked after some thought.

"I do not know how much help he would be to be honest. After what he went through at the school he became unstable. Not only that, but he moved away to live this his sister."

"So the only two people who have experienced these phenomena the longest are not available anymore," Ayako said with concern.

"It appears to be that way," Naru agreed.

"So what now?" Monk asked again. "This is obviously a bigger situation than the principle who hired us comprehended. There are incidents taking place years before today. This is not a current problem."

"Takigawa is right. If anything it is like one of our previous cases, and we all know how that ended," John chimed in.

"You mean the house?" Mai questioned.

John gave her a nod.

"We don't know if it will be like that case or not though. Right Naru?" Mai asked.

Naru once again did not reply or even look at her. Mai stood there hurt and with her head bowed. This did not go unnoticed by the team, including Kai.

"Thank you Mr. Flaga for your time. Should we have more questions we will come and find you," Naru said ending the interview. The teacher acknowledge what Naru was saying and made a quick leave. Once the door closed that is when the real discussions started to take place.

"Ms. Hara, earlier when you walked around did you sense any spirits?" Naru asked looking at her.

"I did sense something, but it was like a thick fog covering it. I could not make out exactly what it was I was sensing."

"I see, what about the rest of you?"

"There is definitely a disturbance here," Ayako concluded.

"Yeah, but the question is how big?" said Monk. "I mean just think, we have not even been her a whole day yet, and we have already had a spirit attack us."

"But why is Masako not sensing anything?" John questioned. "Especially with a spirit like that. We all felt it in that room."

"These are most assuredly questions that need to be answered," Naru said while thinking. "We need to organize all our data. Takigawa, Ms. Masuzaki, Ms. Hara, and Father Brown please go around the school once more. This time try to see if you can find any particular locations where you feel the 'fog' the most as you say. Lin and I will see if we can find the previous principle's new phone number..."

"Actually," Lin said interrupting Naru. "Kai and myself will do that. You and Mai can organize the data."

"Lin, if you..."

"Naru," Lin said with such a voice that Naru did not even complete his threat.

Everyone in the room stood shocked. Lin stood up to Naru, and Naru did not even try to get the last word. Lin then gave everyone a nod. With that as their que they set out to do their job. All that was left in the room was Naru and Mai.

Mai stood there waiting for Naru to say anything. But instead Naru picked up all the data, and began sorting through it. Mai felt her emotions starting to get the best of her. Her hands bawled into fists, and she felt the tears beginning to form in her eyes. She could not understand why Naru was so angry with her.

"Naru...," Mai said trying to get his attention, but he just continued. "Naru..." Again no response came from him. "Naru!" Mai said with such a force in her voice that Naru froze. With his back still to her, she asked, "Why are you mad at me?" she questioned as her voice began to fail her. Naru turned to her and Mai held her breath.

* * *

PLEASE REVIEW! :) Reviews encourage me :) That means chapter 4 will probably be up quicker ;)


	4. Chapter 4

Hello everyone! I am so sorry for the late update! My computer got shipped off because it was having problems, but here is the next chapter! I hope you like it. Please review! They are encouraging and I would love to hear what you all think! :) Again I am so sorry for the delay. I will have the next chapter up next week. Thank you all who have been reading! Enjoy!

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They stood there for a couple of minutes just staring at each other. Mai knew by now that her face must be turning blue. She was so nervous. This was new territory for her and Naru, and right now he was finally looking at her. She did not want to ruin that, but she also knew that they needed to fix things.

Mai let out her breath, and asked, "Naru, why are you mad at me?"

Naru became stiffer, and slightly turned his head away from her. "You know why," he answered.

"If I knew why, I would not be asking you," she replied calmly.

"How did you expect me to react Mai?"

"React to what?"

"That boy!" he said with his harsh tone.

Mai cringed, "You mean Kai?"

"Yes, him!"

"What is wrong with Kai? We are old friends. I knew him before I even knew you."

"Don't give me that crap Mai! I saw the way he looked at you!"

"How did he look at me?!" Mai stated with her voice rising.

"Really Mai? You could not see it? Because everyone else did!"

"Everyone else also does not know that we are in a relationship!"

"Do not try to change the subject!"

"I am not trying to change the subject!"

"You introduced him as your EX!"

Mai immediately became silent. She realized now what was going on. Naru was feeling the same way about Kai as she did about Masako. The question was how was she going to get Naru to see that? The gods only know how stubborn he is, and she knows that that stubbornness he has only increases when she is around. Mai took a deep breath, and made her way to Naru. She was standing in front of him now. He looked down at her with his eyes full of the emotion she knew all too well. She gently grabbed his hand, and made him keep eye contact with her.

"Naru...you don't have to worry about anything. It is over between Kai and I."

"Right, how am I suppose to believe that?" he replied again with his harsh tone.

"What makes you doubt it?"

"The way you looked at him when he walked into the room. The way you ran to him to give him a…"

"A hug," Mai said completing his sentence. "I have not seen him in years. Of course I would be excited to see him. He is almost like family. And besides, that hug I gave him was no different than the one I give Monk, John, or anyone else."

"I still don't like him," Naru stated bluntly.

Mai allowed a giggle escape her, which caused Naru to give her a questioning look.

"What is so funny?"

"You," she replied with a smile.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. You feel the same way about Kai as I do about Masako."

"Hhmm, you are imagining things," he stated as if it were fact.

"Excuse me?" Mai said startled. "I believe you do."

"I do not allow those emotions to overcome me as someone else I know," he said looking at Mai.

"What?!" Mai exclaimed getting irate. "Naru, just admit it!"

"I can not admit to something that is not true Mai."

Mai was now angry. He was making it sound like she was the only one in this relationship that was insecure. While in fact she knows he is as well. If he wasn't then he would not have made such a big deal out of Kai.

"If it were true, that you did not...'alllow these emotions to overcome you' as you put it. Then you would not have made such a big deal out of Kai!" she exclaimed. Mai was feeling proud of herself, because there was no way Naru was going to be able to get out of this one. He was going to have to admit that he was feeling jealous and threatened.

Naru gave Mai one of his handsome smirks and looked at her, "Those emotions had nothing to do with that. I just don't like other people touching what is mine."

With that he went back to the data; leaving a dumbfounded Mai standing in the middle of the room with her mouth hanging open. After a couple of minutes she regained her composure, and started to help Naru with the data.

'Well at least we are talking, and making eye contact again,' Mai thought to herself.

She then came to realize that she would never be able to beat Naru at anything. A couple of hours later the team returned to the base. They were all exhausted, and because of that they quickly ran through what they found. Masako stated that there was a strong fog in the gym, the classroom from earlier, and a few other places. Mai marked them on map of the campus. Once they finished conversing about what they had found, Naru suggested that everyone get some sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.

_Day_2_

It was lunch time when the team finally finished compiling all the data they had. The worst part was they were no closer to the truth than they were before. All they knew was that this haunting had been going on for fifteen plus years, and it had something to do with a man and a young woman.

"So basically we have nothing," Monk decided to say bluntly.

"No, we have gathered some interesting facts," Naru calmly replied. "But, this case is not going to be easy."

"You can say that again," said Ayako as she examined her nails.

"What exactly have we gathered?" John asked. This caused everyone to just stare at him. "Hey, you all have the same question. I am just the one able to ask it," John stated.

"He is right," Monk replied with a sigh.

"Well, Naru. Please tell us what information we have gathered will help solve the case," Masako requested politely.

"For right now, I think I am going to keep my opinions to myself," Naru answered as he looked through one of the data books.

"Then how are we suppose to know what to do?!" Ayako questioned with an irritated voice.

"Think for yourselves, and as always follow my instructions," Naru replied.

"Why you…" Ayako started to say.

"Now if you don't mind I will be going to collect some data I requested," Naru said as he put the book down. Next thing everyone knew Naru and Lin were out the door.

"Ok, so what do we do now?" Ayako asked.

"I suppose we need to review the data, and come up with a plan," Monk answered looking to John for support.

"That sounds good to me," said John. "What do you think Mai?"

"It sounds good, but where do we start?" Mai questioned. Right then there was a knock at the door. Kai stepped in to find all eyes on him.

"Um, hello everyone," Kai said feeling uneasy. Then everyone got a huge smirk on their face. They now knew where to start. "Why are you all looking at me like that?" Before he could blink he was seated in a chair with everyone surrounding him.

"Ok, Kai. You are going to help us go over the information," Monk told him.

"The information?"

"Yes, all the data we have collected," Mai answered.

"And you will tell us of anything else you think of," Ayako commented in.

"Ok?"

"So let us start from the beginning," Monk commanded.

"Which beginning? The students or the teacher?"

"Students," Monk answered.

"Ok, well we had the incident with the bathroom, and the nurse's station. Those were the two big ones right?"

"Yes, but don't forget about the classroom," John reminded.

"Yes, and the classroom," Kai reassured. "Now what?"

"What do they all have in common?" Ayako questioned.

"Nothing, I don't think," Kai answered.

"Gosh, why does this have to be so difficult," Monk said as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Wait," Mai said getting everyone's attention. "There is one thing in common. All the incidents involve a young girl."

"She right," John agreed.

"But, that is still not much to go on," Monk pointed out.

"Yeah, what are you all suppose to do?" Kai asked. "Follow all the young girls around?"

"Well, no," Mai said in a hushed tone.

"Mai does have a point though," John encouraged.

"Wait, there is something else..." Kai said as trailed off in thought.

"And what would that be?" Ayako asked.

"That black figure was part of two of the incidents," said Kai.

"If all the incidences are connected between a man and a young girl, then I would say there was a huge disagreement that took place here," said Masako.

"She could be right, espically since something violent took place between the two of the incidences," Monk agreed.

"But all of the incidences were violent in some matter," Mai pushed.

"Yes, but two involved someone," Monk reminded.

"What if Mai has a point?" John questioned out loud.

"What do you mean?" Monk replied.

"Well, they were all violent. So…" John started to say.

"What if the figure was there or at least caused it, and he was just not seen…" Kai finished.

"Exactly," John said giving him a nod.

"Would that be possible?" Monk turned to Masako.

"It would most certainly be a possibility," she answered.

"Is there any way for you to tell that?" Mai asked her.

"I can not tell if it would be the same spirit exactly," she answered.

"What do you mean?" said Mai.

"What she means is that she can not identify if a specific is continually causing the incidents unless she sees them," Monk started to explain. "The most she would be able to do is tell us if it has the same feeling as the others."

"But in our other cases you were able to tell…" Mai thought out loud. "You knew it was the woman in the house, and in the labyrinth…"

"Yes Mai, but those all had a strong vibe to them," John explained. "This spirit here, or spirits, does not want us to find out much about him. Not only that, but in those cases they were the only spirits in command there. Here we do not know."

"John is right, we have only been here one day," Ayako chimed in.

"So, what do we do now?" Kai questioned.

"I would suspect that Naru has come to the same conclusion we have," Monk said firmly.

"And that would be what?" Mai asked.

"We are going to unveil all the spirits," he said looking straight into her eyes.

Mai could only gasp in reply.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello everyone! Here is the next chapter! I know it is a bit early, but I thought you all would like that. Thank you all reviewed! It was truly encouraging and motivating. Please review again! I hope you enjoy this chapter and tell me what you all think. I love hearing from you all. Enjoy!

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"What do you mean we are going to unveil all the spirits?!" Mai shouted.

"Calm down Mai," Ayako told the young girl.

"No! Will this hurt anyone? Is it dangerous?" Mai continued to shout.

Mai then felt strong hands grab her shoulders and give her a good shake. "Mai you have to trust us," Monk said firmly.

"Is it dangerous Monk?" Mai questioned again not letting down.

Monk gave a sigh, "Yes, it is very dangerous. Especially since we don't know how many spirits are here."

"Then why do it?!" Mai shouted. "Why put ourselves in danger and not only us, but all the people around us!"

"It is because we do not know the number of spirits that we need to do this," Ayako explained calmly.

"There has to be another way…"Mai trailed off. "Right? Masako? Is there anything you can do?"

"While I do not like this either Mai, there is little else we can do," Masako told her with a sad look.

"Who exactly is in danger?" Kai questioned.

"The spirits and the people who are doing the unveiling," Monk answered the boy.

"What about bystanders?" Kai questioned.

"Yes, they to can be harmed if they are not careful," Ayako answered.

"Then let's not do this!" Mai shouted again getting more upset. "This is a school Monk! A school! There are people all over this place! That is a huge risk!"

"Mai, don't you think we know this?" Ayako countered the girl. "There simply is no other choice. We do not know who…what we are dealing with."

"If we do not take this chance there could be greater casualties later on in the case," Monk said as he turned away from Mai.

"John…" Mai said to get his attention. "Please tell me you do not agree with this…"

"I'm sorry Mai," John answered.

Mai slumped in defeat. There really was no other way. This unveiling was not only tricky, but dangerous as well. For everyone involved and not involved. This was just too great of a risk.

_Day_3_

Today was the day that the team would be doing the unveiling. To Mai's appreciation, Naru had decided to do the unveiling at night so that no innocent bystanders would be injured in this process. Mai had grown more nervous, because she was not entirely sure how this unveiling works. Mai was now currently in the base by herself when there was a knock at the door. Mai found this to be rather strange because of the lateness of the hour. She went to the door to open it, all the while holding her breath expecting the worse. When she opened it she found Kai standing there in regular clothes smiling at her.

"Kai!" she exclaimed surprised. "What are you doing here? It is dangerous to be here now!"

"I know, but I couldn't help it. I felt like I should be here to help. After all the principle told me to assist you in any way possible."

"That is true, but I don't think Naru will like the idea that you here," she commented back in a whisper.

"And why is that?" Kai questioned with a raised brow.

"Because you don't know how to defend yourself!" Mai quickly replied with a force in her voice.

"Oh, and you do? Besides I know how you get when you get scared. You freeze up."

"I have grown up some Kai. Give me credit for that much."

"Hmm, well then you won't mind showing me how much you have grown since the last time we were together," he replied with a smirk that made Mai shiver. She remembered that smirk. His 'you know what I mean' smirk. The smirk that made her crumble to his feet, and do whatever he wanted.

"You will have to talk to Naru…" Mai told him.

"That's fine with me," he replied with the smirk still planted on his face. "I think he will be fine with it."

"You don't know Naru like I-"

"Mai, what is he doing here?" Naru questioned as he suddenly appeared behind Kai.

"He came-"

"Hey, I came because I want to help," Kai informed him.

"Do you know warding magic?" Naru questioned as he made his way into the base.

"No," Kai answered

"Then I do not know how much help you will be," Naru told him. "Frankly you would just be getting int he way," Naru said flatly.

"Oh, come on!" Kai pressured. "Someone has to look after Mai to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid right?"

A laugh was heard from behind Mai, as she was still standing by the door with it opened. Kai had followed Naru in as they were arguing his case. Mai turned to find Monk behind her with a smile.

"You know he is right Naru," Monk said. "All of our hands are going to be full. Someone is going to need to keep Mai in her spot. That could be the perfect job for him."

"Hhhmm, I suppose you do have a good point Mr. Takigawa," Naru thought out loud. "Very well, Mr. Yamato you will keep an eye on Mai during this unveiling. Do not let her out of your sight. Is that clear?"

"Yes," Kai replied with force.

"Very good," Naru answered him with a glare. Mai could feel the tension in the room. She knew Naru did not like Kai, and from the looks of it the feeling was mutual.

"Naru," Ayako said as she stepped in. "We almost have all the charms around the school campus."

"Very good, Ms. Matsuzaki," Naru told her. "How much longer?"

"Not much longer, we have one wall left," she informed him. "It was a good thing that the school had a wall surrounding the entire campus." With that she took off to help out with the charms on the final wall.

"Ok, Naru what now?" Monk questioned.

"There are four walls," Naru began. "Ms. Hara and myself will stand at the entrance of the main school building. You all will direct the spirits to that spot. Is that understood?"

"Yes," everyone said in unison.

"Mai, you and Mr. Yamato will go to the roof. You will film what is happening below you."

It was at that moment Monk took off out the room to let everyone know what the plan was. Mai and Kai stood in the room with Naru in silence.

"Mia, you will bring this camera up to the roof," Naru commanded as he pointed to a camera on the table. "Make sure you bring microphones as well. We will need to sound recorded."

"Right," Mai answered as she headed towards the table to get the gear she and Kai would need.

"I'll get it," Kai told her as he grabbed the equipment. "I'll got ahead and bring this up to the roof. You grab the microphones."

"Oh, ok," Mai said as she watched Kai leave the room with the camera and it's wires. She was now alone with Naru.

"I didn't think you would let him stay," she commented quietly. "After all, you made it clear that you did not like him."

"Takigawa made a valid point," he answered her as he looked through his notes.

"So what?!" she exclaimed. "If someone makes a valid point you will just accept it and go along with it!" she yelled at him. She turned away from him as she felt tears threaten to fall from her eyes. 'He doesn't actually care about me…does he?' she thought to herself. In that moment strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her aghast a strong from chest. Startled at first, but then relaxed into the warmth radiating off the body. She felt a head lean onto her should as the arms tighten around her. An arm around her waist and and arm around her chest. She had never felt so secure before. She placed a hand on the arm across her chest.

"I will not be able to protect in this moment," he whispered to her.

"Naru?"

"And no one else is going to be to either. You know some warding magic, that should be enough for this…but Mai you get so passionate sometimes. No, I do not like the guy, but he will be able to keep you on the roof no matter what happens," he said as he told loosened a bit. "I can't bare the thought of losing you."

"Oh, Naru," Mai whispered as she realized the confession he was making.

"If it is for your best interest I will allow certain things, but remember," he said as he turned her around to look into her eyes. His eyes were demanding, serious, and something she could not quiet place. "I do not like others touching what is mine."

Mai's eyes grew wide. 'She was his?' she thought to herself. "Right, like you so kindly said before," she commented back. "Remember that Mai," he said with a smirk. Although she felt she should be irritated with him for picking on her in a time like this. She just could not bring herself to be, and she wondered if while he was picking on her if he meant those words as well.

"Now, go get the microphones and set them up," he told her. "Make sure that boy does not break any of my equipment."

"Yes, sir!" she said returning to her regular self. She grabbed all the equipment and started heading towards the door. She turned to see Naru looking through his notes again and smiled. She really has fallen in love with him. She just hopes he felt the same way. She then scurried off to set everything up on the roof, and make sure Kai did not break anything.

It had been a few hours and the preparations were complete. Everyone, excluding Mai and Kai, were standing at the center of the school in front of the main building. Everyone was ready to start.

"Ms. Matsuzaki take the eastern wall, Takigawa take the northern, Father Brown the west, and Lin take the south. Ms. Hara come with me. When we are ready Mai will give the signal. I want you all to activate the charms on your wall, once they are activated I want you to push what ever spirit towards Ms. Hara and myself. Is that understood?"

"Yes," they all answered at once.

"But, what do you plan to do once they are all by you?" Monk questioned.

"Ms. Hara and I will handle it,"he answered. "Everyone get into position!"

Everyone ran off to their places and waited for the signal. Once Mai saw everyone was in position she lit a light that everyone could see. Everyone began to chant and activate their charms. All four walls glowed with a light. Mai and Kai were recording the whole thing on the roof. Mai had ended up getting three more camera's so they could record what was happening in each direction. Mai was currently checking the mic when Kai grabbed her attention. He pointed to one wall and Mai gasps. There were a tone of spirits. A lot more than they expected. She check the other walls and they were all the same. Women, men, children, and elders made their way to the front. She looked down towards Nara and he was as unexpressionless as ever. The spirits all made their way towards the center. Screams surrounded them in every direction. Dreadful, deathly, and painful screams echoed into the night and empty buildings. Mai watched in horror. She had never seen so many deaths, not even in the train station. They all reached the center and the spirits were all trying to get away. The team held them there not allowing a single on to escape.

"Why are you here?" Masako questioned.

_"Please help us," they all screamed in pain._

_"Save us!"_

_"Don't let him find us!"_

"Who? Don't let who find you?" Naru questioned.

_"The Master! Don't let the Master find us!" _And then there was a horrible scream that had conquered all. The spirits departed making an isle and a young woman appeared. She looked to be foreigner. She had dark skin and long black wavy hair. Her eyes were blue as the sea. She was dressed in what appeared to be a torn and burnt plain white kimono. Her face had burn marks, but they did nothing to make others believe there was no beauty under the scars. She walked until she was in front of Masako and Naru.

"Who are you?" Naru questioned.

She suddenly turned to him and her blue eyes pierced him.

_"Who are you?" _a voice like silk rang out. Making everyone shudder.


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone! Here is the new chapter! I hope you all like it :) Thank you everyone for the reviews! I truly appreciate that you all took the time to write it. They motivate me greatly. Anyway enjoy! And review when you finish reading :) I love hearing what you all think :D

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The young woman gazed at Naru with cold eyes questioning eyes. She looked him over and then turned to Masako. Masako froze when the young woman turned her gaze to her. Masako felt coldness radiating off the young woman. While her eyes were as blue as the sea, Masasko saw the darkness in them. The young woman then turned her attention to her surrounding. She glanced at everyone, and then suddenly paused in one particular direction. Her expression remained the same, but her attention was clearly else where.

"How…what happened to you?" Masako asked once she found the courage.

The young woman's head whipped back to Masako and glared hard at her.

_"What gives you the right to ask me?!" _her silk voice questioned with fire.

Masako took a step back and then replied, "We want to help you."

_"Help?! HA. There is nothing you can do for us now."_

"Yes there is," Masako began. "We can help you all find peace and then-"

_"And then what? We will be free from our torture? You know nothing!"_

"Please…can't you see-"

_"SILENCE!" _her voice rang out with such a force that Masako was thrown to the ground.

Naru stood there with his cold dark eyes staring into fiery blue ones. After what seemed like hours, but were only minutes, the young woman allowed a deathly smirk appear on her face. She closed her eyes and then focused on Naru again. Naru heard Masako slowly start to get up.

_"What makes you think you can possible help us?" _she questioned.

"What makes you think we can't?" Naru answered back.

_"You do not know what we have been through…and I will not forgive those who hurt us. EVER!"_

"You are right I do not know, but why don't you tell me?"

_"And why would I do that?"_

"Because you know you can not stay here."

_"We will stay here as long as we need to!"_

"The others seem to want to leave, and more importantly hide."

_"There are those among us who know what needs to be done," _she said with a fierce look.

"Who is 'The Master'?"

_"That is of no concern to you."_

"Why not let us try to help you?"

_"Because you can't!"_

"If that is true then everything will remain as it is, but if we can help you then you will have made some progress."

The young woman silently looked at him considering his offer. He had made sense, and she had to admit she liked him. Something about him interested her.

_"I will consider it," _she answered.

"How will we know if you accept our help or not?"

_"You will know. I suggest you do not bring us all out in the open again, or else I will not be as nice as I have been tonight." _

And with that said they all disappeared. Masako standing off towards the back ran up to Naru and clutched onto him. She started to shake as the memory of what just happened played over and over again in her mind.

"Are you alright Ms. Hara?" Naru questioned her.

"Yes, but I have never felt an aura so negative before. The power she has possessed from it is truly frightening."

"What are you saying?"

"I am saying that she was not kidding when she said she was nice tonight," Masako answered in a whisper.

Is was at that moment Monk, Ayako, Lin, and John met them in the middle.

"So what exactly happened Naru?" Monk questioned.

"She is considering letting us help her," he replied flatly.

"Help her with what?" Ayako questioned.

"Yeah, and what exactly happened here?" Monk said.

"I do not know, she would not say."

"Then why don't we just do what we think we need to do?" Monk questioned.

"I am afraid that might set her off," John chimed in.

"Yes, it is actually quiet difficult to fight a spirit that powerful," Lin answered.

"Not only that she would be fighting against us," Naru told the Monk.

"So? We are always fighting against spirits," Monk said.

"Yes, but not ones that are not looking for peace," Lin informed.

The group now realized what the problem was. These spirits were not looking for peace. They were looking for revenge, and a spirit looking for revenge was not an easy spirit to exercise.

"So now we are dealing with a spirit set out on revenge?!" Monk exclaimed.

"Yes," Naru answered him.

They had all made their way back to the base. Everyone minus Mai and Kai were back. The group was now regrouping, and discussing everything they learned.

"Naru, how could you agree to help her?" Monk questioned.

"She hash't accepted my offer yet," Naru informed him flatly.

"But what if she does Naru?" Ayako questioned. "What then?"

"Yes, are you seriously going to help out a spirit set on revenge Naru?" Masako asked.

"This is no ordinary spirit," said John.

The door to the base then opened. Everyone immediately became quiet. They turned and saw Mai and Kai standing on the other side of the door carrying equipment. Kai entered first carrying the equipment where he found it, and then Mai entered looking at the scene before her.

"What's going on?" she questioned.

"Why don't you ask Naru," Monk told her.

"Monk!" Ayako exclaimed.

"Naru?" Mai said looking at him with concerned eyes.

Naru sighed, "I really expected better from all of you." And with that said Naru left the room with Lin not too far behind.

"Ok guys, what is going on?" Mai asked once the door was closed. She placed her hands on her hips which told everyone she was going to get answers.

"Naru made a deal with the spirit," Ayako let out.

"What sort of deal?" Mai replied.

"To help the spirit," Ayako answered.

"Oh, and what is the problem with that? We always do that."

"This spirit is set on revenge," Monk said barely above a whisper.

Mai felt a chill run up her body. She looked at her friends in the room. 'No,' she thought to herself. 'I have a bad feeling about this.'

"What kind of revenge?" she quietly asked.

"We do not know," Ayako answered.

"But wait what is so bad about revenge? Remember that spirit in the park? She wanted revenge and we helped her get it."

"That was different Mai," Monk said as he looked her in the eyes. "While that spirit wanted revenge her aura was not like this one."

"What-"

"She had a very dark and negative aura Mai. One that promised death," Masako said quietly.

"But-"

"Any spirit with an emotional attachment to this world is dangerous," John started to explain. "True that if they did not have an emotional attachment they would not be here in the first place. But the difference is what kind of emotional attachment."

"In the case of the doll house," Monk decided to help explain. "She was only looking for her daughter. Her emotional attachment was maternal instincts, or in other words a mothers love for her daughter. She could not rest until she found Tomiko."

"But what about the case at Rokuryo High School?!" Mai tried to counter. She then felt a comforting hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw Kai standing next her. She didn't know when he finished putting away the equipment, or when he came to stand next to her, but she was grateful.

"That was not a spirit after revenge. That was a human. He killed himself after he put the curse in place."

"Takigawa is right," John agreed. "This is a kind of spirit we have never dealt with before. At least not together."

"What are you saying John?" Ayako questioned. "Have you dealt with a spirit like this before?"

"I haven't specifically, but the man I trained under did."

"What happened?" Ayako hesitantly asked.

"It was not an easy exorcism. To make a long story short a man got greedy, and wanted his neighbor's land. This started a feud between the two men. The problem escalated quickly. One day the man broke into his neighbor's house. He apparently just wanted to scare his neighbor into giving him his land, but while he was in the house he accidentally shot his neighbor's wife. She had gotten up to go to the kitchen to get something when she startled him, and that caused the gun to miss fire. The neighbor ran in and found his wife dead on the floor. In shock he grabbed a knife from the kitchen and charged at the man. The man ended up killing his neighbor in self-defense. Now, the man was convicted and put in prison for his crime, but the neighbor became a ghost. A ghost set on revenge."

"So what happened?" Ayako pressured.

"My teacher and I were called to go exercise the house. The thing was the spirit did not want to leave this world without finding his own satisfaction. There was nothing we could do."

"So you just didn't exercise the house?" Ayako asked.

"I heard about this I think," Monk commented out loud. "Was the house huge and on a farm?"

"Yes, just by a river," John answered nodding his head.

"So you were the young boy," Monk stated surprised.

"I was," John said with a sad look on his face.

"Well, I didn't hear about this," Ayako told them getting irritated.

"The news said that a teacher was greatly injured when trying to perform the exorcism. His student, a young boy, had to drag him out of the house. The young boy knew that there was no way to exorcise the spirit peacefully. So he did the only thing he could do," Monk explained.

"What did you do?" Mai questioned.

"I burned the house," John said while looking down.

Masako gasped in the background. Her eyes filled with tears as she began to imagine the pain the spirit must have gone through.

"So you killed it?" Kai asked straight forward.

"Kai!" Mai exclaimed understanding the sensitivity on the subject.

"Not exactly," Monk told the boy.

"I more of forced him into purification," John said. "We did not know what we were dealing with. The spiritual side of things is not something to be taken lightly. It is all very real, and dangerous. The Lord warns of that in His word."

"Well then why did you not just purify it the way it was suppose to be done?" Kai asked not exactly understanding the problem.

"They had angered it," Ayako explained. "An angry spirit set on revenge is not one you can reason with. It's mind sets on one particular thing, its revenge. For example it would be like me saying your shirt is red."

"But it is black," Kai answered confused.

"Nope it is red," Ayako told him with confidence.

"But you are wrong! See Mai's shirt that is red!"

"But I have convinced myself that the shirt is red. You can not change my mind."

"I'm still not getting it," Kai answered honestly.

"Hmm, in other words," Ayako decided to take a different approach. "His revenge started off as his goal, but as soon as people started to try to make it not reach his goal it became his obsession."

"Oh," said Kai as he started to understand.

"So wait are you saying we are going to have burn this school?!" Mai exclaimed.

"No, I think that is why Naru made the deal with the spirit. To stop that from happening," Monk said. "But that means we may need to help the spirit carry out its revenge, even if it is a death."

The room became quiet and thought about what they had come to the conclusion of.

"I can't do that," Masako's voice rang out in the room.

"Yeah, I don't know if I can either," Monk answered.

"Why do you say that Monk?! This is your job!" Mai shouted.

"But Mai this is on a whole new level," Ayako told her.

"So what!"

"Mai, this is right under the level of a monster," Monk told her with a serious look.

"What if we found a new way for her to find peace?"

"How would we do that?" Kai asked her.

"I don't know. Learn about what happened here. Understand why she is so upset. Sometimes it just takes someone to understand what the other is going through, or at least listen to them. Think about it, who would you feel if you were surrounded by the things that reminded you of your pain every day. Not only that, but the faces around you also went through what you did. You have no one to really talk to."

"Mai may have a point there," John told the others.

"But how are we going to figure out what happened here?" Ayako said with a sigh. "She wouldn't even tell Naru."

"No, but actions do speak louder than words right?" Kai's voice came in out of no where.

"What do you mean?" Mai questioned with a confused look.

"She may not have told us directly, but how she appeared and her body language will tell us something right?" Kai told her as he held up the tape they had recorded of the unveiling.

"Kai you are genius!" Mai shouted happily as she ran over and gave him a hug.

"Haha, are you just figuring this out?" he said as a smirk appeared on his face.

Mai blushed, and then stepped away from Kai. "So are you guys ready?" she asked the entire group.

They all looked at each other, and then back at Mai.

"Alright I am in!" Monk shouted ready to take it all on.

"I'm in," John said.

"If it is to find another way to help her then I to will help," Masako said.

"Fine, someone is going to have to make sure you all stay out of trouble," Ayako said drastically as always.

"Alright Masako make the tea please. We have a long night ahead of us," Mai said with a smirk.

And then the search began.


End file.
